'glamour' and 'maybe' according to Koreans.

Ah, Korea. True, they are the Asian country that spends the most per-capita on English education. However, they remain the least proficient. This is evident in the way that the sign outside my very classroom is misspelled. Expanding on this idea, let me educate you further on English's standing in this here country. For starters, there are some English words that Koreans all know. Words like: cute (pronounced cutie), beautiful (pronounced beautipuhr), love (pronounced luh-be), and so on. While these words are often mispronounced, the understanding of their meaning is on target. Such is NOT the case with the following words in particular: 'glamour' and 'maybe.'

Okay, believe it or don't, it is first necessary that you know how important volleyball is here. School is let out early on Wednesdays for it. Here it is important that you know that Koreans REALLY like school. So, yeah. Big deal. Lucky me! I am literally the closest thing to Kobe Bryant that my school has ever seen in terms of athletic ability. When I dove for the first time, my principal's heart may have literally stopped. Okay, now be amazed as I link volleyball to the topic of glamour.

Turns out, I got to Korea just in time to play in the ultimate Yeosu-wide volleyball showdown. Sweet. We get team jerseys for said showdown. Also sweet. Along comes a shy Korean woman on the volleyball team to explain to me the school-wide concern about me having a shirt that would fit. Direct quote: "You not fat....just...you so glamourous." Looking beyond the obvious best-news-ever (I'm not fat by Korean standards! woooot, woot!) I am told, largely via gesturing, that 'glamour' means boobs. Straight. Up. The day I learned that this indeed was the Korean interpretation of the word was the day that I started hearing that word eevvvvvverrrywhere I went. To be fair, in Korea, Calista Flockhart might be 'glamourous' by Korean standards. Cutting to the chase - the shirt they ordered me was an XL. It is shown above. It was still a crop-top when I served, blocked, hit, or breathed. Win.

Moving on from 'glamour' to 'maybe.' Basically, in Korea is means 'yes.' Pretty much absolutely, at that. Even though it is said with an upward inflection at the end. It can be terribly misleading.

"Do I have to pay my own bills?" "Maybe?"

"Can I go now then?" "Maybe?"

......shuffle awkwardly out the door.